Dick Goddard

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Dick is a true Buckeye, born in Akron and a graduate of Green High School in Summit County. Dick Goddard received a bachelor of fine arts degree from Kent State University in 1960 after having served four years with the U.S. Air Force during the Korean conflict. During his military career, he was initially assigned to the Severe Storm Forecast Center at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma. He then moved to the 6th Weather Squadron's mobile unit. This led to an assignment with the Atomic Energy Commission for the first full-yield hydrogen bomb test (Operation Castle) in the Pacific Islands.

After being discharged from the military, Dick entered Kent State University, while at the same time working for the National Weather Service (then known as the Weather Bureau) at the Akron-Canton Regional Airport. It was after doing radio weather broadcasts that he decided to audition for an available position as on-air meteorologist at Cleveland's KYW-TV in 1961. Dick passed up an immediate opportunity to interview at Walt Disney Studios in California to take the job.

While at KYW, Dick shared in meteorological history when he flew with the United States Navy Hurricane Hunters on the first low-level, nighttime penetration of a hurricane. Her name was Flora and she was one of the deadliest hurricanes on record.

An avid sports fan and athlete, Dick won four letters in football while at Green High and also played freshman football at Kent State. For nearly four decades, he has been the statistician for Cleveland Browns radio broadcasts.

Dick has sung with the Cleveland Pops on many occasions and he has also performed the national anthem at numerous ceremonies.

In September 2008 readers and editors of Cleveland Magazine voted for Dick as "Best Weatherperson" in the magazine's annual "Best Of" issue.

The January 2001 edition of Ohio Magazine named him "Ohio's Best Meteorologist." In the late-1980s, a national survey of newscaster popularity conducted by Herb Altman Communications Research rated Dick as the most popular weathercaster in America.

Dick is also known throughout northeast Ohio for his annual "Woollybear Festival" -- Ohio's largest single-day festival (drawing more than 100,000 people each year) -- and his concern for animals. Dick has presented dog- and cat-adoption programs for over 25 years.

Born in Akron on Feb. 24, Dick currently resides in Medina.

Recent Articles

Gone, but never forgotten. Local woman, Maria Sharp, uses her blog to honor her beloved pet in a very special way. She never imagined that she would end up touching and inspiring animal lovers all over the globe. *Watch her touching story above as Dick Goddard introduces you to Maria and her best friend, Chubby the dog.* Click for more on the blog about Chubby the dog.

A local man’s pet definitely keeps him on his toes! The Alliance man has a 7-year-old pet monkey named Dora. He’s had the animal since she was 10 weeks old. *Dick Goddard tells you more in the video above* Check out more interesting pets.

It’s not your typical house cat. In fact, what a Medina County man has living in his home isn’t even legal in Ohio anymore. Watch as Dick Goddard shows you a big cat with a big price tag. *Click for more unusual pets*

A North Ridgeville woman’s home is overrun with some unusual pets. But, she says her life with more than 50 skunks doesn’t stink at all! In fact, she wouldn’t have it any other way. *Our own Dick Goddard has more in the video above*

MEDINA TWP., Ohio– Dick Goddard is the dean of Cleveland weather and has worked to protect others from dangerous weather situations for over 50 years. While heading home after work on Monday night, a night spent warning others about wild weather in our area, he found himself in trouble from a flash flood. As he drove on the Interstate 71 exit ramp to State Route 3 in Medina Township, he was following a car and noticed a little water. Before […]

She’s no ordinary deer. She’s Dillie the deer, a local pet who is an international sensation! FOX 8 first introduced you to the beloved animal a few years ago; now, she’s even more popular. Watch the video above as Dick Goddard takes you on another date with Dillie. CLICK HERE for more on Dillie including a LIVE webcam.

We all love our pets and even think of them as part of the family. Part of the joy in raising a pet is watching them grow-up. For one local couple, they got a big surprise when their tiny “tea-cup” pot-bellied pigs grew to be 450lbs total! Dick Goddard introduces us to Daisy Mae and Lee Ann.

FOX 8’s own Dick Goddard celebrated a very special day on Monday; it’s his birthday! We sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to our beloved meteorologist and what’s a birthday party without a cake? Sweets were served! Watch the video above for more. See the SkyFOX shoutout to Dick, this morning.

CLEVELAND — February 24 is a special day at Fox 8 News. It’s the day we celebrate three birthdays! A SkyFOX shoutout kicked off the party when photographer Richard “Zoom” Scott held up a sign. “This one’s for the great Dick Goddard!” he said. “Sing it, everybody!” Zoom then led a round of Happy Birthday. We are also celebrating the birthdays of David Moss and Lorrie Taylor. David shared a tortilla soup recipe on Fox 8 News in the Morning […]

COLUMBUS, Ohio– In a continuing effort to help pass tougher animal cruelty laws in the state, FOX 8’s Dick Goddard met with lawmakers at the Ohio Statehouse on Monday. “My parents taught me respect for animals and too many people have no respect,” said Goddard, who has devoted most of his 50-year career at WJW-TV to educating the community about animal-related causes, which is why the bill is being referred to as Goddard’s Law. If passed, it would redefine companion […]

It is the question people across Northeast Ohio are asking, “Will our winter be mild or wild?” For this answer, the fuzzy caterpillars may hold the answer. At last year’s Woollybear Festival, our fuzzy forecasters told us that the season would not be as severe as the previous winter. No one, including the caterpillars, computers and almanacs foresaw just how mild it would be. The surprise eruption of a volcano on Iceland diverted the planetary airflow, resulting in record late-winter […]

Fascinating Facts: Dick Goddard 1. I’m a vegetarian. 2. I don’t even eat animal crackers 3. My most unusual pet was an armadillo. 4. I believe Humpty Dumpty was pushed. 5. The only reason we have for living is to make life less difficult for others. 6. There are 3 things we need to so in life the first is to be kind, The second is the be kind. The third is to be kind (thank you author Henry James) […]